The Somali camel breeds are the second-highest milk producers, producing about 3–5 litres of milk daily, with a lactation period between 12 and 18 months. The Rendille and Gabra camels have a milk production yield of between 1 and 3 litres of milk a day and have a lactation period of between 12 and 18 months.
The camel is the most important provider of milk. Thirty-seven percent of all milk comes from the camel; 30 percent from sheep; 23 percent from the Yak and only 10 percent from cows. Little is known about the milk production of these members of the camel family.
Lactating camels generally produce between 1 000 and 2 700 litres per lactation in Africa, but camels in South Asia were reported to produce up to 12 000 litres per lactation. Camels reach the maximum yield in the second or third month of lactation and produce milk for between eight and eighteen months.
Chal, or shubat (Kazakh: шұбат, şūbat, pronounced [ʂo̙bɑt]), is a Turkic (especially Turkmen, Uzbek and Kazakh) beverage of fermented camel milk, sparkling white with a sour flavor, popular in Central Asia — particularly in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.
Camels, with their ability to go 21 days without drinking water, and produce milk even when feeding on low-quality fodder, are a sustainable option for food security in difficult environments.
Camel milk has a sweet, slightly salty, and creamy taste. It has a similar smooth consistency to 2% milk, even though it is very lean and low-fat. Most people who try it for the first time expect to hate it! They expect it to taste gamey or sour.
With more vitamins, minerals, and proteins, it is more beneficial. Camel Milk is way more different than Cow Milk, even in terms of taste. Camel Milk, with its saltier taste and more benefits, for sure overshadows cow milk!
According to the USDA, there are around 5,000 camels in the United States as of 2021 compared to 94.4 MILLION cows! Camel dairies are even rarer! This makes it difficult (and expensive) to find and purchase camel milk. Because of low supply and high demand, the price of camel milk is expensive in the US!
at 30°C, pasteurized camel milk can last for more than 10 days at 4ºC and when lactoperoxidase system is activated fresh milk can be stored at 30ºC for about 20 hr. Q. Is camel milk thicker than other milk? A: No, camel milk is thinner and less viscous than milk of cow, buffalo, sheep, goat, yak etc.
In the U.S. camel milk is hard to find, and in many cases, has to be shipped from overseas in powdered forms. However, in Dubai, and other Middle Eastern countries, camel milk is as common as any other milk, and is even seen in ice cream, cheese, and milkshakes.
Hooded seals (Cystophora cristata)
Hooded seal mothers produce the fattiest known milk. Human breastmilk has about three to five percent fat in it. But with more than 60 percent fat, hooded seal milk would rival some of the richest Häagen-Dazs ice creams out there.
Did you know? Cattle produce 81 percent of world milk production, followed by buffaloes with 15 percent, goats with 2 percent and sheep with 1 percent; camels provide 0.5 percent. The remaining share is produced by other dairy species such as equines and yaks.
Camel Milk is nearly identical in taste to regular milk. Some people note it is slightly salty with a sweet aftertaste. Although low in fat, it has a delicious creamy body to it.
“Everyone can have camel milk – even newborns,” says Berta. “It's been shown to be suitable for lactose intolerant people, too. The main reason it's a better choice for them is because it doesn't contain beta-lactoglobin, which is the protein found in cow's milk that causes allergic reactions.
Also, prophet Muhammad (PBUH) has recommend camel in his speech (hadith). The prophet (PBUH) has recommended camel milk for some diseases such as skin disease as remedy. Camel plays in important livestock which produced milk longer than any other ruminant under harsh condition of desert ecosystem.
It is purchased often by parents with autistic kids who have a hard time digesting casein. It has also been used as a replacement for infant formula for infants who do not tolerate cow or goat milk based formula.
Camel's milk is relatively low in fat, so the yield is low as well. But, cheese can be made with it and, where there's a will, there's a whey. Due primarily to new technology, camel's milk can be coagulated using vegetable rennet and camel rennet. (Veal rennet is not effective.)
In addition, vitamin C in camel's milk scavengers superoxide, H2O2 and hydroxyl radicals so it prevents agglutination of sperm, also it helps in vitamin E recycle and prevents lipid peroxidation and protects against DNA damage induced by H2O2 radical (Guney et al., 2007).
Research has found that high ROS levels can lead to many diseases, including cancer and autoimmune diseases. Anti-oxidants help to lower ROS levels. Camel milk has a lot of anti-oxidants. Supporters of camel milk as an autism therapy claim that the anti-oxidants in camel milk can reduce ROS levels in autistic children.
Caravane is modern-day's, first camel cheese produced in the early nineties by Nancy Abeiderrhamane. Its similarity to camembert has earned Caravane the nickname, 'camelbert cheese'.
Camel's milk is generally an opaque white color and has a faint sweetish odor but sharp taste; sometimes it can be salty (10).
Why is it so expensive? Camel milk may not be quite as popular as cow milk. Compared to the 600 million metric tons of cow milk produced worldwide, only about 3 million tons of camel milk are produced each year.
As per the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, camel milk, when not consumed fresh, must be processed or boiled (26).
For a stronger, thicker milk whose confidence you can taste, oat milk should be at the top of your list. And if you just want the best taste, find yourself some macadamia milk at least once, and see where the non-dairy delight takes you.